Write Every Day Down

Jason Upton's “Write Every Day Down” is a reflective folk-style song about paying attention to ordinary life. The first lines paint a small scene: “I've got boring old black shoes, an orange in my pocket, and I walk the same road every day.” He says a lifetime can pass, and if we are not careful we will miss all that it has to say.

The refrain is the title, repeated like advice. Then he lists the days he has known: sunny, cloudy, with a slight chance of rain, surprising, exciting, unforgettable. The next verse gives thanks for Matthew, Moses, Adam and Eve, and for people who tell the whole story, asking God to give us the courage we need. He addresses the finder of letters sailing in bottles out on the sea, and says he is happy to tell them God lived in these times. He has been a witness to the most beautiful day and the most horrible day, and he says both had miracles in them. The song draws on a book about a woman who kept a diary under terrible circumstances, and its point is that a written account can help a life point to God. It encourages listeners to keep a record of what they see him do, even on an average day.

Numbering our days is Psalm 90:12. Remembering the works of the Lord is Psalm 77:11-12, and writing down the vision is Habakkuk 2:2.